A very good end to the month of November for the Devils, as they swept the Thanksgiving week’s 3 game slate. However, it may have come at a price…and some historical humiliation.
Before Thanksgiving began, the Devils first had a Wednesday night matchup against Bridgeport (and of course, Joe Whitney returns for the second time). It was all Devils from the beginning, as they outshot the visitors 16-6 in the first period. Rod Pelley (his 1st) and Blake Coleman (his 3rd) would score 1:28 apart during the period for a quick 2-0 lead. Ryan Strome, on just the Sound Tigers’ 8th shot of the game, would cut the lead in half in the second. The Devils would only manage 2 shots in the third, but made the most of it, as Coleman would score his second of the game 6:58 into the third to put the game away. Yann Danis barely had to break a sweat in picking up his 9th win, stopping 18 of 19 shots. Paul Thompson added two assists, while three others had helpers. And the Devils had a season low 4 penalty minutes, all in the third period.
The Lineup:
Matt Lorito-Joe Blandisi-Mike Sislo
Reid Boucher-Blake Coleman-Paul Thompson
Ben Thomson-Blake Pietila-Corey Tropp
Pierre-Luc Leblond-Rod Pelley-Max Novak
Dan Kelly/Marc Andre Gragnani
Seth Helgeson/Vojtech Mozik
Brandon Burlon/Corbin McPherson
Yann Danis/Doug Carr
Out: Scott Wedgewood, Jim O’Brien, Chris McKelvie, Graham Black, Ryan Kujawinski, Reece Scarlett, Raman Hrabarenka, Joe Faust
Power Play: 0 for 3. Penalty Kill: 2 for 2. Penalty Minutes: 4. Shots on Goal: 30. Shots Allowed: 19.
Highlights:
Friday: With both Joseph Blandisi and Blake Pietila getting hurt during Wednesday’s victory, Alexandre Carrier was summoned from Adirondack and signed to a PTO. In 12 games with the Thunder, he has 1 goal and 3 assists, along with 27 penalty minutes.
The homestand came to an end on Black Friday, as the Devils hosted the Senators for the second time in a month. And on this night, it was all Devils from the very beginning. Mike Sislo scored his team leading 11th goal 3 minutes into the game for a 1-0 lead. Corey Tropp would add his 4th on the power play late in the period to double the lead. And Binghamton? They had more fights (2) than shots on goal (1). Things continued to fall Albany’s way in the second, as Reid Boucher and Brandon Burlon would score 2:19 apart midway through the period for a commanding 4-0 lead, chasing Senator starter Matt O’Connor from the net in favor of Scott Greenham. The Devils would outshoot Binghamton 18-4 for the period, bringing the totals to 29-5 after 40 minutes. No goals in the third, but things got ugly early on as former Devil Mark Fraser boarded Blake Coleman, injuring the rookie’s shoulder and giving Albany a 5 minute power play opportunity, which they were unable to capitalize on. Not that it mattered much anyway…the way Binghamton was not shooting, Yann Danis could have played beer vendor and still have no problems. His third shutout of the season was probably the easiest one he has ever had…he only had to stop six shots. That’s right…Binghamton had just 6 shots on goal the entire night, a new team record. Matt Lorito and Paul Thompson each added two assists.
The Lineup:
Mike Sislo-Matt Lorito-Corey Tropp
Reid Boucher-Blake Coleman-Paul Thompson
Max Novak-Ryan Kujawinski-Ben Thomson
Pierre-Luc Leblond-Rod Pelley-Alexandre Carrier
Dan Kelly/Marc Andre Gragnani
Seth Helgeson/Vojtech Mozik
Brandon Burlon/Corbin McPherson
Yann Danis/Doug Carr
Out: Scott Wedgewood, Joe Blandisi, Jim O’Brien, Chris McKelvie, Blake Pietila, Graham Black, Reece Scarlett, Raman Hrabarenka, Joe Faust
Power Play: 1 for 6. Penalty Kill: 3 for 3. Penalty Minutes: 23. Shots on Goal: 32. Shots Allowed: 6.
Highlights:
Saturday: Another day, another Devil injury, another call to the north. With Blake Coleman being added to the walking wounded, Thunder forward Greg Wolfe was signed to a PTO. The Michigan native has 10 points (3 goals, 7 assists) in 13 games.
To finish the week, the Devils traveled east to Springfield for the second time in 13 days to play the Falcons for the third time in that same timespan. Unlike the night before, Albany actually had work for Yann Danis to do in the net. The Devils penalty kill, which is tops in the league, actually had a misstep in the first, as the Falcons’ Greg Carey would give the hosts an early lead. But that lead lasted all of 1:47 as Corey Tropp would tie the game up with his 5th. Reid Boucher would score on the power play late in the period for a 2-1 advantage. As for the shots on goal? Let’s just say it took 12:05 for the Devils to allow 7 shots…something that never happened in 60 minutes the evening before.
Both teams would trade goals during the second, as Domenic Monardo would re-tie the game up at 2 midway through the period. Then the Devils took the lead back, thanks to the new guy…Greg Wolfe scored his first AHL goal in his Devil debut to put Albany back up by one. But the Falcons would tie it up yet again early in the third, as Monardo scored his second of the game. But Paul Thompson would come through in the clutch, as he scored on a power play nearly midway through to put Albany back up for good. Danis had more of a workload on this night, but still picked up win #11, stopping 19 of 22 shots. Ryan Kujawinski added two assists, while 5 different Devils each had helpers.
The Lineup:
Mike Sislo-Matt Lorito-Corey Tropp
Reid Boucher-Max Novak-Paul Thompson
Pierre Luc Leblond-Rod Pelley-Alexandre Carrier
Greg Wolfe-Ryan Kujawinski-Ben Thomson
Dan Kelly/Marc Andre Gragnani
Seth Helgeson/Vojtech Mozik
Brandon Burlon/Corbin McPherson
Yann Danis/Doug Carr
Out: Scott Wedgewood, Joe Blandisi, Blake Coleman, Jim O’Brien, Chris McKelvie, Blake Pietila, Graham Black, Reece Scarlett, Raman Hrabarenka, Joe Faust
Power Play: 2 for 4. Penalty Kill: 1 for 2. Penalty Minutes: 11. Shots on Goal: 37. Shots Allowed: 22.
Highlights:
My Player of the Week:
This was a very hard decision to make this week, as I could have gone a few different ways. Thirteen different Devils got on the scoresheet this week, while the defense averaged just under 16 shots allowed per game for the week. So…we’ll have to let Paul Thompson (1 G/4 A), Reid Boucher (2 G/2 A), and Yann Danis (3-0, 1 shutout) share the title.
Team Leaders:
Goals: Mike Sislo (11)
Assists: Matt Lorito (15)
Points: Matt Lorito (19)
+/-: Vojtech Mozik (+15)
Penalty Minutes: Seth Helgeson (39)
Wins: Yann Danis (11)
GAA: Yann Danis (1.86)
Save Percentage: Yann Danis (.925)
The Vault:
This week we’re going back to April 2011, when Marc Andre Gragnani picked the right time to score his first NHL goal while a member of the Sabres.
Up North with the Thunder:
Another good week for Adirondack, as they went 2-0-0-1 and held on to first place in the East Division, just one point ahead of Manchester. Ken Appleby picked up a 2-1 win over Elmira at home on Wednesday, stopping 32 of 33 shots. He would suffer a shootout loss in Elmira on Saturday, stopping 33 of 37 in regulation/overtime, then only giving up one goal in the shootout round while the Thunder came up empty. He sat out a 2-0 Thunder win over Greenville on Sunday afternoon. Appleby is now 9-2-0-1 with a 1.99 GAA and a .932 save percentage.
Adirondack has a home and home series with Brampton on Thursday (road) and Friday (home).
This Week’s Schedule:
After the brief trip east on Saturday, the Devils kick off December with a four game homestand, with three games coming this week. On Wednesday, St. John’s makes their first trip to the Capital Region of the season. Saturday afternoon Rochester comes calling for the first time in quite a few years. Then on Sunday, Syracuse makes the first of two visits in 5 days.
Thoughts Inside The Box 